Place: Reviews & Ratings

Pretty interesting place with the shuffleboard table inside, the gondola outside, and the interesting bathroom decor (60s ski brochures in one and cassette tapes in other). Not super large but a nice space with indoor and outdoor areas.

We only had bottled beers due to an issue with the refrigeration for the draft beer - the bottles were pretty good. Hope they get that worked out soon as I would like to go back and get some interesting drafts.

Bartender was friendly, knowledgeable, and was dealing well with the draft crisis.

Decent bottle selection (as well as some cans) where we found a couple of beers I don't see many places - both English beers.

A: This place offers a pretty low-key atmosphere. Used to sit on in the back, but alas it was cold, we we hung at the bar. Nothing overly obnoxious going on here, which is great.

Q: Never had any problems with the freshness on tap. I did not have any bottles so I cannot speak to that.

Ser: The service was really great. Quick prompt and knowledgable.

Sel: There are about 9 brews on tap. They are labeled nicely and easily on the menu. It is good for newbies to brews. They have 30+ bottles too on the menu. Was able to have some Goose Island Pere Jacques.

O: A nice low key vibe with some interesting bews on tap and in bottles. Not as expensive as some think, IMO, a nice place that has lots of locals, no tourists. (723 characters)

I went to the The Diamond on Wednesday night during a recent NYC trip to visit my good friend. We went to a show earlier in the evening at Williamsburg Music Hall. The music was awesome and we had an ample amount of Sixpoint beers at the show, so this may not be my most coherent or detailed review.

It was late in the evening when we arrived after a pleasant 10 minute walk from the music hall. The weather was comfortable for an August night in the city.

The Diamond has an unsuspecting exterior and a nice design inside with a comfortable vibe. The bar has a half-moon shape and a good amount of seating in the back. The bathroom walls are decorated with vintage cassette tapes that looks pretty cool. There is also a back patio area as well.

Beer selection was really solid with a nice cross representation of different styles of beer. The selection of bottles and drafts included Southern Tier Hop Sun, Stone Levitation, Two Brothers Long Haul, Schneider Weisse, Otter Creek Copper Ale, Orval and Saison Dupont. Tons of other good selections and wines as well.

My buddy and I shared a tray (eleven 7oz glasses) of the Riessdorf Kolsch, that we found refreshing and mighty quaffable.

I thought The Diamond was a very cool neighborhood bar with a chill vibe that showcased an excellent selection of quality brews.

We ended playing a bunch of shuffleboard as the night went on and had a lot fun (Cue up 'fuzzy memory').

I would like to re-visit next time I'm in Brooklyn. (1,487 characters)

As a resident of Greenpoint, I find myself at the Diamond rather frequently. They seem to have just the right mix of tradition and ingenuity to fit the trendy neighborhood beer crowd. The Diamond is Usually busy on the weekends, but not jam packed the way Radegast, Berry Park or Spyten Dyvel are. The Diamond is still a little hidden in a weird spot on the river with little other business real close to it. This means I can still get exceptional service on the weekends, and not deal with trust-fund yuppies up to my neck. This is a real nice local joint.The decor is quirky and interesting with odd little paintings all around the place. The Patio is great in the summer and sports a game similar to horseshoes. The Music is always good, mostly rock. (the owner has a thing for Van Halen). The Real Draws of This bar are Its beer (of course) and the vintage shuffleboard table. The Beer List is not the most extensive i have ever encountered, but extremely well thought out, covering a large range of styles and countries in about 30-40 bottle offerings. The Taps change regularly and everything is high quality. This is a spot that prides it self on a pristine product and everything from the taps to the lines to the bottles to the kegs are all well maintained, cared for and serviced. Shuffleboard is both addictive and really fun. Anyone can play and most of the customers are only semi-serious about it. This is really the spot to go for good beer in North Brooklyn if you are in the know, but I didn't tell ya... (1,526 characters)

Not far from the Gutter, and I guess Brooklyn Brewing for that matter. Come to think of it, dba's not really that far either.

Cute place. A little too plain for my tastes, but OK. It's clean and neat. And I like the half-circle bar. The exposed brick is always nice, and the juke box was welcome.

I was turned off-that the bartender was more interested in her personal stuff than attending to me, and also that I couldn't get a sample of the Southern Tier Creme Brulee (this was a while back). She told me I could have a sample for $2 in a shot glass. ??? That's $1.33 and ounce. I ordered it figuring it had to be at least OK, but then I paid $7 for a "12 oz" glass that was actually a 10 oz. glass. Ahhh, it's still OK, but why act so cheap? Anyway, OK, grief aired, let's move on.

They have (or had) 33 bottles and 8 taps. Cask as well! They have a limited selection of wine (8), cider (1), and sake (2), but their choices are good.

The food is limited but pretty good as well. A fresh corn salad is $5, pickles and olives are $4. A beer pie is $7. They have cheeses though, which is great. Apparently they get them from BierKraft. They break them down into cow/goat/sheep to make it easy for you. I forget what cheese I had but it came with honey and almonds and crostini.

If you're in the neighborhood it can't hurt to stop in. (1,337 characters)

Stopped in for a few as part of this years "Slanderpalooza". Yet another interesting, slightly different,high quality, very BA worthy spot in WBurg, Gpoint, whatever you want to call it in the international beer destination borough of Brooklyn, NY. Nice mid sized place. Light and airy, funky off beat art all around the palce. I especially got a kick out of the cassette case wall paper in the bathroom. Curved wooden bar, shuffle board table in the mix. Nice outdoor area with a vintage gondola unit from Gore Mountain. Quality taps numbering about 10, extensive bottles, again high quality with many interesting and not widely seen choices. For the tap/bottle details, go to their website. Beer availability is well kept and up to date. Limited food options. Quite friendly and very well informed barkeep. Well worth a visit and/or as a part of a neighborhood crawl. (869 characters)

Stopped in a Friday night, on accident. We were on our way to the Brooklyn Brewery but i wasn't sure what stop it was on the G. Ended up getting off at Greenpoint Ave and started walking through an industrial/little on the seedy side neighborhood. Saw the Diamond Sign lit up and know i heard of this place.

Wasn't too crowded mostly 20-30 crowd. People either playing shuttleboard or hanging out in the backyard area, which is pretty cool and it was nice out that night which made it even better.

The quality of taps are all microbrews, foreign and domestic about 16 of em. We had Southern Tier Pumpking and Avery IPA. Beers were $4-$6. The bottle list was also of high quality about 20 offerering, again foreign and domestic available, something for everyone (JW Leeds i remember seeing also)

Food- The kitchen consisted of a toaster oven on the side of the bar. only cheese and meat platters really...ordered the cheese platter...$12 for 3 different selections, with honey covered almonds and toasted bread pieces. the Chevre du miel...WOW awesome stuff

Overall a pretty cool hang out bar if ur in the area with great beer on tap, would def come back on a warm weather night and for some shuffleboard (1,207 characters)

Last stop on my NYC beer trek. First off I would recommend figuring out if there is a bus that hits close to this place if you are the walking/subway type, if not, late at night take a cab. In the middle of what seemed to be an industrial warehouse hood about 20 minute walk from the Bedford Ave stop is the Diamond. Not really hard to find, just not easy to reach... and probably not the safest to walk to alone at night. :) Anyway, I hit the place on a Monday evening so my accounts are from what I guess were a slow night, just how I like it. Maybe 20 people there from 10ish to 1ish. Bartender was down to earth and mellow, willing to pour quick samples and offer small/beer talk. Vibe of the place was chilled on the night, a few games and a small patio out back. Selection was about average here, prices not too bad given what you are supposed to expect with NYC. The music was I think from the bartenders ipod which I personally was digging; nothing overly obnoxious and mainstream, pretty much indie tunes. I could see this as my local neighborhood bar easy... if I lived in a loft warehouse. (thats what I gathered from my wondering walk at least.):) (1,159 characters)

Until the day that every person puts The Diamond as a top 5 bar in NYC or Brooklyn, I will be designating it as under-appreciated.

I wonder if bars are kind of like starfish. If I cut off a piece of it and put it next to my apartment, would it grow into a whole bar??

The atmosphere is not showy here at all. Just nice and laid back and chill. Quality is very very good. Everything I have had here tastes just as it should be. Service is great. Dave is a gem in the Brooklyn beer scene. His descriptions of the beers on the chalk boards are not only well thought out but informative. Several times I have found myself reading them and learned something new. I mean, he just knows his stuff. Hands down.

Going along with his vast knowledge is the selection. He gets a lot of great beer, and numerous things you would never expect to see, because you just didn't know it existed. I have seen things more than once here that surprised me.

Food is limited to cheese and meats, etc. as well as some meat pies and rolls.

Prices range from typical to cheap (by NYC standards). $4 for a Brooklyn Extra Brune? That is one of the strong beers too! (8.5%) And it isn't the only $4 one up there.

I have been giving The Diamond far too little attention over the past few months and absolutely need to devote more time and effort to hang out there. I suggest you do the same, especially if you are going to be at The Gutter or the Brooklyn Brewery...or anywhere within a 50 mile radius for that matter. (1,496 characters)

This was stop three on our Philly Does New York pub crawl, after we took the "tour" of the Brooklyn Brewery, which was maybe a 15-20 minute walk if you're slow.

If I had to pick a favorite of the pub crawl, this was it. Nothing but a bunch of rowdy, liquored up Philly BA's going to town at the bar. Seriously, we were the only people in the place. After we ordered our beers, and cemented our take over of the bar, we proceeded to take over the shuffleboard table. Oh, so much fun drunken shuffle board is.

About the taps, I would say they had around 8-10 taps, and all were quality brews. They had Ipswich Oatmeal on tap, which was simply icing on the cake at that point.

I did not have any of the food, but I did see a couple of cheese plates being passed around, and everyone seemed very pleased with them.

Overall, a great bar, and one I wish was right around the corner. If you're in the area, stop in, you won't be disappointed. (940 characters)

Hey, have you seen Dave's new place? It's a good house. Seriously. And it's a perfect fit for what is the neighborhood, nestled between the northern corner of the Williamsburg bar crawl and what's to be seen on the out of the skirts of Greenpoint. Part of fact finding missioning about is the 'ccumulating of new stuff learned. A little something I've picked up on as of late is that session and strong don't battle, they balance...

Seemingly smallish place but never tight. A neat crescent shaped alternate striped paneled wood top bar with an iridescent sparkly colored dark metal trim off to the right side, with a matching sparkly tower box on the bar sporting 8 taps. Seating for a baker's dozen on mostly similarly matched backed stools. Behind the bar, a flat top cooler with wines displayed on one side of a center pillar, a cooler with top and side doors on the other side, and a compact baby kitchenette on the end with a sink, a fridge and a spooky oven that just knows when the food is cooked. The brick wall over the barback holds a pair of large blackboards displaying the tap and bottled selections; one listing the session beers (below 6%), the other listing the strong beers. Each beer shown is accompanied by a brief description or comical quip ("Aventinus, Germany - A banana split"; "Aecht Schlenkera Rauchbier, Germany - Smoke this beer"; "Rochefort 6, Belgium - Baby Trappist"; "Saison De Pipaux, Belgium - Buyer beware!"; "De Dolle Oer Bier, Belgium - Super bubbles, strong, fruity, tart"; "Rogue Hazelnut Brown, Oregon - Oh, sweet hazelnutty browniness").

Roughly 3 dozen bottles in all (including the vintage selections, '98 JW Lees Harvest Ale, '97 Gales Prize Old Ale, '00 A. Le Coq Impy, etc.), which like the tap selections, are split between session and strong beers. Dave knows his game and puts on only what he likes or thinks you will. Other boards list new seasonal and not seasonal bottles, and another with vinovinovinovinovino; nearly a dozen wines, meads and the like (Red, White, Rose, Sparkle and Wine-ish stuff), mostly by the glass and bottle. Also on that back wall, shelving on and around the center barback pillar holding glassware below a framed snuggly bear painting, a mounted collection of cheese cutting knives, and some very cool "No Smoking" and "Choking?" prints, hand drawn by that bartender guy over there.

Running adjacent to the bar is a table shuffleboard game below a wall painted true blue with small funny paintings, including David Lee Roth's face on a butterfly, some guy someone went to school with's face on a bird perched on a branch, Geddy Lee standing on the hood of a Datsun 240Z playing a 2 headed bass, Dave's dad in a rowboat (say, aren't you the guy from Harry's?), a condensed view of Greenpoint from the Manhattan side, Dave's dog Chopper in an astronaut suit (that Julianne Moore is a sucker for a guy in uniform), and some others under construction.

A pair of roundy tables, one to each side of the door below the wide double horizontal front windows, with three sided "U" shaped bench seating, and some tables to the rear; a pair of 2 seaters below the large aerial beach at Coney print, 2 across the way, and a 4 seater in the back corner near the stairwell to the enormous (in spirit) basement party room. And out back, a small 2 tiered patio holding a handful of tables where dirty smokers can be found year round. Diamond Dave's got a good Halen-centric jukebox in the back corner near the bathroom (stop stealing the tapes, you freak) although we seem to get good music flowing from the Ipod more often than not (We're regularly asking "Who is this?")

Light foodings available. A cheese plate (3 cheeses served with bread, almonds & honey), pickles & olives (crazy spicy half sours with Kalamatas & Greeks), and a pair each of Tuck Shop savory pies and savory rolls. Remember on the bar crawl when we bagged getting lunch first and went to that pre-crawl bar for a quick beer instead? Yeah, well, when we got here, I gone and 'et a Wise Sage (pork sage) roll. It may have saved my life, it definitely saved my afternoon.

Always a good mix of session and strong on tap, usually 4 of each although it sometimes swings 5 and 3 either way. I caught the 8 tap beer list as such (Sprecher Black Lager, Harviestoun Bitter & Twisted, Southern Tier Hop Sun, Schneider Weisse, Rock Art Tomahawkus, Witkap Singel, Reissdorf Kolsch, and Captain Lawrence Double IPA) when I took my notes, but it changes up, as I've been drinking the Goudenband laughingly as of late. The Reissdorf Kolsch is a staple served in a cylindrical 7 ounce glass and you can get a round party tray of 11 of them (it comes to about 2 and a quarter litres).

They've done a pin or three, and are getting around to events some. Clean, nicely comfortable and chill chill. Very good stuff here, didn't I tell you? (4,864 characters)

Stop number three on the Philly Does New York BA Pub Crawl. Probably my favorite of the day just because we had a blast there. Nobody but us BAs inside, shuffleboard, and good beer. Good times. Our bartender, Bob, was off the hizzy! He chatted us up, served us quickly, and I think he enjoyed our company as much as we enjoyed his. I had some sort of spicy pork roll thing that was pretty damn good. Decent selection of both draft and bottled/canned beers. A little on the pricey side, but the laid back environment is welcomed by us non New Yorkers. Not at all stuffy or over done. If you're in the area (Brooklyn Brewery) stop by....it's well worth it. (654 characters)

This was a huge surprise on our crawl through New York. It is a simple walk from Brooklyn Brewery. When you step inside ... behold; a beautiful little modern bar that emanates class and fun. The shuffle board table is a nice touch but means nothing with out the great beer selection. I shared a 2005 Abbaye Bon Chien with witbier. mmm. and I had a little appetizer and a cheese tray that was divine. Not very filling but impressive. The bar tender was right on top of everything, and though he didn't have all the answers he was at least fluent in craft beer lingo. This is a must see on your next trip to Brooklyn.

I can't even begin to describe my excitment when The Diamond opened a mere 3 blocks from my house! This is a pretty special place. The selection is similar to Spuyten Duivil but the environment is a lot more relaxed and friendly. It's not overly decorated or overly concieved just very laid back. Everytime I've been there it's been a friendly mellow vibe....(with the exception of one night last week...but hey that was a full moon)

I love the indoor shuffle board and could just sit there playing all night. The juke box is great....

and the beer oh yeah the beerwell what can you say it's fantastic. They always have stuff on tap that that I don't come across anywhere else. They also have some rarer brews by some of the better known "local" breweries.

I really love the fact that this bar doesn't get nearly as mobbed as Spuyten does...hopefully it stays that way ;)

The cheese plates are great and I hear they are going to start doing some more food in the future.

it's a bit pricey...but this is as to be expected with some of these rare imports and locals they are serving...but they do take cards!

The Diamond is a artsy, modern decor space which sports a circular bar, selective 8-beer draft list (divided by beers over/under 6% ABV, diverse 50-bottle list, including the always inspiring and tasty Swiss-made, Abbaye Bon Chien, spacious backyard with ring toss game, funky bathroom with "cassette" decor, and a "table-top" Shuffleboard game. They will have their first cask pin on the bar on 9/30/07.

Dave Pollack, known from his days with B. United Importers, offers his take on worldwide craft beer, fine cheese (have not tried, yet), and a friendly local bar with plenty of beers and atmosphere, to make it a destination in and of itself. The Diamond, along with the other new arrival on the beer bar scene, The Gutter, is a great bridge between Greenpoint and Williamsburg bars. A great stop on the now infamous G-pt-Billyburg crawl! (842 characters)

This has become my new beer drinking establishment. A great new beer bar on the borders of Greepoint and Billyburg. When you walk in there is a wraparound bar with about 12 seats or so, a shuffleboard table to the left and a garden in the back. You can play some miniature horseshoes in the back. The inside decor isnt the icest bar in the world, but hey it does the trick. Plus shuffleboard is nice.

Beer wise they have a rotating selcetion of 8 beers on draught. This is a good seasonal list with tasty things. For awhile I was drinkig some Capt Lawrennce 2xIPA which was nice. They have also had beers from Southern tier, Rock Art, Schneider, and other good quality breweries. Reissdorf Kolsch is their version of lightbeer which sells well and hits the spot on a nice warm day. Another nice aspect is the Kolsch is served in traditional Koln glasswear on a proper serving tray. I think you can get 11 small glasses for $22. Nice deal. The selection is always good as the owner bartender Dave used to distribute annd work at Spuyten Duyvil.

Bottle wise they have about 30 or so divided into session and strong. This is a good selection of offbeat beers, common ones and a few vintage ones as well. Always something new to try.

The best part is the quality. The tap lines are always clear(true it is new) and there is always a proper head on the beer. They know what they are doing. Very knowledgable staff is ready to walk you through what you like and also shoot the shit with some beer geeks.

Food is limited to cheese but this might expand inn the fall. The cheese plates have always been top notch and pair well with the beers.

Happy houurs as of this writing are from 5-7 and offer $2 off per pint which really cannot be beat. Other tha that they rannge from $4-$6 or so and bottles are priced accordingly.

Music is generally pretty good as well with a good mix that pleases me at least and luckily not too many hipsters yet. Hopefully it will stay that way.

This is a great neighbourhood bar and a welcome addition to the growing list of places to grab a drink. It is a short walk from McCarren Park and the Brooklyn Brewery.

Edit-They now tap gravity kegs on Sundays. They also have meat pies from the Tuck Shop. (2,231 characters)

New (July 2007) addition to the Northern Brooklyn beer bar scene. They have 8 drafts, always including an unusual selection of micros and imports, and also should soon have weekly gravity casks. $2 off happy hour 5-7:00 p.m. They have approximately 50 bottles, including a section of session beers, and to my great interest, Val Dieu, Rochefort 6, Saison Pripaix, several De Dolle beers, J.W. Lee's Harvest, Gale's Prize Old Ale, and A. Le Cocq's Extra Double Stout. The quality of the selection is very high, all excellent beers. (530 characters)